Money Troubles And Stress Can Lead to Periodontal Gum Disease

Posted on 11/23/2016 by Todd Jorgenson

Info on a recent study released in The Journal for Periodontology indicated that those individuals who suffer from stress due to financial issues were twice as likely to fall victim to periodontal gum disease.

The study stated that those who regularly experience high levels of stress due to financial issues and who did not hone the proper skills in coping with such stress were at increased odds, of about two fold, of experiencing gum disease.

How and Why Financial Strain Contributes to an Increased Risk of Periodontal Gum Disease

It may seem strange in hindsight to accept the notion that financial stress could possibly cause periodontal gum disease, but experts say that it can and it does.

The reasoning, according to scientists performing studies, is that those who lack the proper coping abilities to deal with the stresses of finances-which tend to be not only a constant but also a long-term concern- also tend to react to the problem with an emotion based approach rather than the preferred problem based approach. The scientist further goes on to say that emotion based coping ultimately may result in altered habits.

Such habits include teeth grinding or clenching, reduced overall oral hygiene, including infrequent professional care, as well as a reduced ability in the body to fight infection.

The study also showed that those individuals who faced their financial troubles in a practical and active manner, as opposed to avoiding the issues at hand, or rather in a more problem based focus were at no increased risk of developing periodontal gum disease over time.

The scientists conducting this particular study shared that in order to determine to what extent controlling financial stress could, and according to their studies does, affect or rather influence the onset of periodontal gum disease that further research would be necessary.